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Wednesday, June 4, 2008

It’s so much more than design... It’s creativity!

Every wonder what’s behind the design of the child letters you receive? Javier Cárcamo, the Communications Coordinator at our agency in rural Guatemala, explains how the letters from children at his agency reach their finished form.

The forms that children use to write letters to their sponsors are something more than just graphic design. In our agency, these forms are an exercise in creativity that go through many processes to guarantee that the letter templates are attractive and functional. We keep the sponsors who receive them in mind, as well as the children who must feel motivated to write.

The process begins when the bilingual assistants give their recommendations based on their translation methods in order to maximize their output.

The Communications Coordinator immediately gets to work interpreting their suggestions into graphic designs. These designs are based on several factors: the appearance that the agency decides upon, educational principles that are sensitive to the rural Guatemalan culture, achievements and limitations, as well as the social obligation to make the letters have an educational function. All of the above must respect the guidelines set by Children International. The templates are then proofed by children, youth and Field Officers who make their observations.

Once the changes are made, our Director supervises and checks the final designs so that the Sponsor Relations Departments in both the Regional Office and in Kansas City can authorize their printing. Then follow up work is performed in color mixing and in the actual printing of the letter templates. Now that’s TEAM WORK!

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